the girl on the bench

Chapter 5

If last night wasn't exhausting enough, tonight will be even worse. AFL season is terrible for the drinking culture in Australia. It's even worse for those who have to deal with the drunks. Tonight's game involves Collingwood. Collingwood supporters are stereotypically known for being outrageous, loud, and drunk. At least I can dress up for tonight's shift. No uniform means slightly revealing clothing which means more tips. I put on my push up bra, a low cut crop white t-shirt, high rise black skinny jeans and my slip on vans. I check myself out in the mirror. Make-up. I need more make-up but I don't have time. I jump in the car and head off to the bar.

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The worst thing about working in a bar is the cocktails. They take time to make and can cause a huge build up of people waiting to be served. I cringe every time someone orders an espresso martini. Luckily for me, once the game starts everyone focusses their attention on the television set. The only people left at the bar are waiting for their cocktails. I finish handing out the last ones to two women and they thank me. Once they walk away, I look to see who is next in line. I see what is now becoming a familiar head. She came. She has her back to me and the lighting is dim but I know it's her. Her hair cascades down her back which is covered in a colourful shirt. She wears baggy jeans with holes at the knees and of course, a baseball cap. I see her bare arms for the first time and can see there are small tattoos dotted all over. I wonder where they stop? No, Sophie. No. She is talking to someone with a bright red suit, black tank top with her boobs pushed up over the top and curly brown hair. G turns around to face me. I smirk and can feel my face immediately flush. "Hey!" she says excitedly. "Hi there, stranger!" I say suddenly grateful I put some effort in my look tonight. I immediately slip back into work mode "What can I get you guys?" I ask them whilst busying myself cleaning up the bar. G puts her hands on the bar and leans back. "Ah..." she surveys the beers on tap and says something inaudible to her friend. "Two pints of VB please, love" she says drumming her fingers on the bar. I nod, grab the glasses and start pouring the first. She busies herself talking to her friend. I assume it to be her girlfriend as the way they are interacting is way too close to be just friends. That's also with me assuming she is gay. She may just be straight for all I know. She sees me staring at her and smiles wide at me. "Busy tonight?" she asks me. "Yeah, well, Collingwood is playing so... " I pause, "I kind of wish we put a ban to Collingwood supporters, they can get a bit feral if they're losing" I respond. She bites her lip and smiles without saying anything. My face drops "No! You're not are you?" I ask now realising that I've not only insulted her favourite football team but also her. "Yeah, even I can admit we're pretty terrible supporters if we're not winning". I don't say anything and simply place the perfectly filled glasses in front of her. She hands me her card to pay. I shake my head. "Those are an apology for the insult" I say ashamed. She laughs and takes a sip. "I'll come back to pay later" she says and winks at me as she walks away. The night goes on relatively quickly however I keep finding myself looking over at her. She's sat in view of a television screen and is interacting with the game. Her back is to me but it doesn't stop my eyes from checking on her whereabouts.

"Hi, what can I get you?" I ask a lady who's standing in front me. "Um... I'll get an espresso martini, thanks" she says. I nod and begin mixing the liquids. I put the lid on the shaker and start shaking. I turn around to grab a glass and find G standing in front me with a dumbfounded expression on her face making me stop what I'm doing for a second. I continue to shake the shaker and I see her eyes drift from the shaker to my boobs. I look down at them myself to see them shaking from side to side as is the shaker. I smile. I pour the shaker out into a martini glass and without skipping a beat I look at G in the eyes and ask, "Did you like the show?" She laughs and turns ruby red in the face. She looks at me "Uh, yeah... I mean um... You can make cocktails? Pretty impressive!". I laugh at her fumbling over her words and grab two pint glasses. I hold up the glasses and ask her "Two pints of VB?" "Yeah" she says looking away from me "This time, I'm paying". I hand her the filled glasses and take her card from her hand. I swipe her card and hand the machine to her so she can input her pin. "What time do you get off?" she asks me as she busies herself with the eftpos machine. "Uh" I say looking down at the time on the till "I'm here until closing. Judging from the crowd, it will probably be around 1am" I say in response. She looks defeated and takes a swig from one of the glasses she was holding. "Are you planning on walking tomorrow morning?" she asks. I blush and nod my head. She smiles at me, nods her head and walks back to her friend.

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At around 11pm, the bar seems to die down except for the last few stragglers. Maybe I'll finish up earlier than I thought. G's still here with her friend/girlfriend but it looks like they're about to leave. They finish the rest of their drinks and G collects the glasses. Her friend/girlfriend heads towards the toilet and G heads towards me. "You heading off?" I ask as she approaches. She nods as I take the glasses from her. "I better stop drinking now or I'll have a hangover to nurse tomorrow" she jokes. "I'm sure you can handle more than two pints" I say. She looks down and says, "I used to be able to but not anymore". It seems like I've hit a sensitive subject. I'm on a roll of insulting this girl. Given my track record, she's set to run for the hills the next chance she gets. I did say that I don't need another friend or anything more that that. "I'll see you tomorrow?" I ask her and she snaps out of her daze. She nods and smiles then heads for the exit where her friend/girlfriend is waiting for her. I wave my hand at her friend/girlfriend who waves back with a smile. Whoever that is, I don't want to get in the middle of.